While Japan's achievements in the field of life-size fictional robot replicas are the standard by which the rest of the world gauges their artistic worth (at least, in my unhealthy, mecha-centric opinion), the nation seems to be setting a dangerous virtual reality precedent with a new augmented reality app that skips actual robo-buildage for mere simulation. Have they not seen "Inception?!"

The upcoming iPhone app from Yahoo is designed to allow those who visit the nearly 60-foot tall statue of Amuro Ray's RX-78-2 Mobile Suit Gundam in Shizuoka, Japan to couple their photos with a virtual foe in the form of Char Aznable's MS-06S Zaku II suit.

The app is set to display the red (it's totally always been pink Char!) machine from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. from its release through September 30 and will only appear on iPhone 3GS or 4 models when pointed at the Gundam statue. Fans who can't make the pilgrimage are out of luck too, because the app uses the iPhone's GPS and compass to put together the proper Zaku projection.